Zeeb Decontamination

Hey everyone,

Having trouble finding info on zebra mussel veligers in bilge water and what can be done about them. I’m on a zeeb infested lake and go to Wisconsin at the end of October.

I’m mortally terrified of taking zeebs with me. Anyone know of anything other than the 21 days and a courtesy decontamination to try to mitigate?

I would think washing with a good strong bleach water solution in the bilge would be hard on them if veligers snuck in there but haven’t found anything to back that up.

Thanks everyone!

Take a different boat.

The question I have is “How long do veligers live in bilge water?”. If your boat is sitting in the pole barn for a week before you head off on your next trip, is that long enough to kill them off?

SR

Then you’d also clean and dry your anchor rope, every single inch of line on your reels, every crack and crevice in your trailer, take your boat off the bunks if you have them, clean and dry then replace boat. I can go on but complete these tasks first…..

What can I add?

Thanks for being concerned and trying to do the right thing. I would think a call to St. Paul (DNR) should get a answer.

Don’t take the above answers as being the guys don’t care, I’m sure they do. It’s just likely they have been around for decades and saw how the war on drugs has gone and can equate the two to each other.

From the MN DNR website:

http://files.dnr.state.mn.us/rlp/permits/lsp/decon-manual.pdf

A 0% survival rate of mussel veligers (larvae) has been shown in water temperatures of 95 °F (35 °C) and above, therefore rinsing the interior compartments at 120 °F during standing water flushes will kill the veligers.
This research reinforces the importance of standing water decontaminations for boats leaving infested waters, even if no adults are found on the vessel
. Research on other species also supports the use of 140°F water to kill Eurasian watermilfoil, faucet snails, New Zealand mud snails, and spiny water
fleas at various exposure times

-J.

You can dry your gear/boat for as long as possible in air temps over 65. You can wash your gear/boat with 120+ degree water, but the hotter the better. Using bleach would work if left long enough but then you’d be dealing with corrosion issues on anything metal. Personally I’d try finding a DNR decontamination station. They can power wash the boat and will have hot water for the livewell and bilge.

blackbay wrote:

They can power wash the boat and will have hot water for the livewell and bilge.

This is the sort of info I was looking for. I appreciate you telling me they have hot water for bilges/livewells/etc. I’m taking every other precaution but was stumped on the standing water issue. Thanks.

I realize it’s an elemental that eventually will probably be everywhere but I just want to take every precaution possible.

Regularpaul wrote:

I’m taking every other precaution but was stumped on the standing water issue. Thanks.

Standing water? Why not park at an incline and let it drain, and then sponge up what little water may be left? And going to a decon site might be a good idea too. I too, have gone out of my way to one once before I went up to northern MN. I thank you for your strong concerns with properly cleaning your boat.

ClownColor wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>Mike W wrote:</div>
Take a different boat.

This guy wins genius of the year award…you must work as a private consultant solving critical workplace problems.

Anyways, to the OP, thanks for being part of the solution and not the problem as many seem to be these days. I’ll echo what has been said by some but washing with <nobr style=”font-size: inherit”>warm water</nobr> and letting it sit dry for sometime is your best bet.

Thanks again!

yea well i’m sure everyone’s got an extra boat sitting around just in case??????????

While the chemical of choice is now a copper-based chemical called Earth TecQZ, the DNR uses Zequanox on their equipment, nets and boats – but they don’t recommend it for public use??? The guys in Michigan have been using a 10% bleach solution but since we have to drain our water, its hard for the bleach to be sloshing around in the bilge to be most effective. There are folks who believe changing the ph with vinegar will kill veligers. But then you attract Norwegians.

ClownColor wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>Mike W wrote:</div>
Take a different boat.

This guy wins genius of the year award…you must work as a private consultant solving critical workplace problems.

Anyways, to the OP, thanks for being part of the solution and not the problem as many seem to be these days.

Thanks again!

I can’t help try to be part of the solution. I feel like it’s futile but I’m gonna try anyway. To learn the lake you love has zeebs in it is crushing.

Cracking wise about a different boat kinda deflates me and makes me feel like people have resigned themselves to it. It probably is the case. I just don’t wanna give up.

Fight the good fight. It’s your time.

“There are folks who believe changing the ph with vinegar will kill veligers.”

I was poking around looking to see is I could find an answer to my question (How long do veligers live in a bilge) and I found that the Arizona DNR suggests dumping some vinegar into your bilge to kill them off. Other than that, I see references to waiting 5 days, but I wonder how that is affected by the amount of water in the bilge, the temperature, and how much oil, gas, beer, coffee, Mountain Dew and who knows what else is down there too.

What we need is something like those little bricks that the mosquito control people throw into swamps. I’m envisioning something like an SOS pad soaked full of veliger killing chemicals. Once a year you throw one into the bottom of your boat.

SR

Whatever you do, just make sure you feel good about it; seems to keep the Lakeshore owners confident in their solutions.

Hopefully the bleach will evaporate before the plug is forgotten about and it escapes your boat and into the lakes of MN or WI.

Brian Klawitter wrote:

Hopefully the bleach will evaporate before the plug is forgotten about and it escapes your boat and into the lakes of MN or WI.

Absolutely. I would rinse out a bleach solution long before the boat went back in the water.

ClownColor wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>Mike W wrote:</div>
Take a different boat.

This guy wins genius of the year award…you must work as a private consultant solving critical workplace problems.

Thank you. Lets pick something a little tougher to solve next time.

Where does the bleach solution end up after rinsing it out?Likely the storm drain,then on to a local creek,river,pond,lake..

Chlorine would evaporate rather quickly. I don’t see an issue. The tons of salt we dump on the streets each winter is a lot more damaging.

-J.

Jon Jordan wrote:

Chlorine would evaporate rather quickly. I don’t see an issue. The tons of salt we dump on the streets each winter is a lot more damaging.

-J.

X2 chlorine breads down fast when exposed to air and the sun. Salt not so much.

I would not try vinegar if you have an aluminum boat. Vinegar is a mild acid and it will etch the surface. If you do, the vinegar would need to be neutralized with a baking soda solution.

If you don’t have hot water, a bleach solution would be your best choice.

If you are traveling through Crosslake to you your next destination, there is a decontamination station at the Crow wing Co./Crosslake Joint Maintenance Facility. Monday – Thursday call 9:00am to 4:00pm for an appointment, Jon Kolstad at 218-692-2688